Who Are LASK?
LASK are an Austrian club from Linz. They were established in 1908 and throughout their history they were never a team that was expected to win a lot of trophies, like the clubs from Vienna. LASK were the champions of Austria only once, in 1964-65 season and they are still waiting to get a new trophy. They are hoping that will happen this season, as they are sitting atop of Austrian Bundesliga.
They have a six-point lead over RB Salzburg, which is a minor miracle, and their run in the Europa League is also their biggest achievement. This is a historic tie for them in every sense.
How Good Are They?
Well, considering they are comfortably ahead of Salzburg in domestic championship, they are obviously very good. They were also great in the Europa League group, where they only lost one match, to Sporting. But they did beat the Lisbon side at home 3-0 and also won both matches against Rosenborg and getting four points out of six against PSV Eindhoven.
Their vibrant approach is reminiscent a little bit of Salzburg, but with less prodigious youngsters and a more closely-knit team. In the round of 32 they defeated AZ Alkmaar, with a 2-0 win and a 1-1 draw.
Who Are Their Main Players?
LASK have a team full of youngsters, especially in midfield and attack. Marko Raguz is one of the strikers that was getting more attention, especially after his brace in that 2-0 win against AZ. The Brazilian Klauss was dominant in Bundesliga with nine goals and Thomas Goinginger has been very good in midfield. Their coach Valerien Ismael is doing a great job and he has been exclusively using a 3-4-3 formation.
There is a lot of energy to this team, as they have to be very fluid going forwards and backwards in order to pull off this system. Their pressing can be intense, but Man United are clearly a better side. Still, it will not be easy.
What About The Fans?
Well, the match will be played behind the closed doors. Prepare for an odd TV viewing. It will feel as a training game and the intensity might lack because of the lack of an atmosphere and energy that fans tend to bring to matches. But in the end, this was an expected decision, as safety and health are the main priority.
On Wednesday, Manchester United released a statement saying they are monitoring the coronavirus situation and all scheduled fixtures will go ahead as planned, following guidance from governing bodies and the UK government. Therefore, this match is planned to go ahead, whilst matches Inter v Getafe and Sevilla v Roma have been postponed, due to fears over safety of all involved.
While You Are Here
Sunday’s Manchester derby at Old Trafford was the most-watched Premier League game in United States TV history. A total of 1.76 million people tuned in to watch the game, NBC have announced.
Also important – Paul Pogba and Anthony Martial were not in training today, the day before the game against LASK.
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